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LINCOLN AND THE 
PATRONAGE 



By carl RUSSELL FISH 



REPRINTED FROM THE 



luttcriaw gii^tanal §mm 



VOL. Vlll NO. I 



OCTOBER 1902 



[Reprinted from The Amekkan Hisiokkai. Review, \'o1. VIII,, No. I, Oct., 1902. ]■ 



LINCOLN AND THE PATRONAGE' 

The inauguration of Lincoln lias for us so tragic and so critical 
an aspect, that we find it difficult to put ourselves in the place of 
the average politician of the day, to whom it was chiefly interesting, 
as affording an opportunity for plunder, or as bringing, almost, a 
certainty of removal. No sooner were the election returns in, than 
Springfield filled with anxious crowds,- and during the nine days 
which he spent in W'ashington, as President-elect, Lincoln was pur- 
sued by applicants, as eager as if there were no doubt about the 
stability of the government they wished to serve.' To those who 
were present in the flesh must be added thousands who confided 
their desires to the post, and, according to his degree, every Repub- 
lican of prominence was deluged with requests, modest and preten- 
tious,'' some accompanied by bribes,^ others supported by an appeal 
to pity,'' or a claim for reward." It was a motley crowd ; western 
lawyers mingled with the drill sergeants of Weed's organization, 
while some sturdy workers against slavery thought that their dis- 
interested constancy might now receive an earthly crown." A new 
party had come into power, eager to break its fast, and feast on the 
good things that the administration had to dispense. 

Richard Henry Dana wrote to Charles Francis Adams, March 
9, 1863, of Lincoln : " He seems to me to be fonder of details than 
of principles, of tithing the mint, anise and cummins of patronage, 
and personal questions, than of the weightier matters of empire." ' 
Lincoln himself deeply lamented the time devoted to these petty 

' This article is a by-product of a work on the history of the patronage. Lincoln's 
administration is not particularly significant, from the point of view of development, but 
is rich in materials. It, therefore, seemed worth while, considering also the intrinsic 
interest of everything that relates to Lincoln, to prepare a fuller treatment of this period 
than just proportion would permit in the completed work. 

'Lamon, Life of Abraham Lincoln, 457. 

'Tarbell, Life of Abraham Lincoln, I. 423. 

* Chase MSS. I have read several thousand such letters, for the period 1 860- 1865. 
See also Hollister, Life of Schuyler Colfax, 173. Almost any biography or volume of 
recollections gives like evidence. 

^Riddle, Recollections of War Times, 21. 

'Chase MSS., /(7J«;k. 

'A typical letter is one to Chase, Nov. 24, 1863. Chase MSS. 

* New York Tribune, March 19, 1861. to Chase, Dec. 15, 1862. Chase 

MSS. C. M. Clay, Autobiography, I. 252-257. 

'Adams, Richard Henry Dana, II. 264. 

(53) 



54 C. R. Fish 

matters,' when great issues demanded his attention, although, as 
always, he saw the humorous side of the situation,- and gained a 
goodly supply of stories, from his experiences in dealing with them. 
Regrettable as was tliis constant distraction, the importance of the 
work must not be underrated. The situation demanded a politician, 
as well as a statesman, and had Lincoln been the latter only, he 
would have failed in his task. If he could not have held the Re- 
publican party together, he would have formulated statesmanlike 
policies in vain ; and that he held it together was quite largely due 
to such use of the public plunder that its cohesive power was felt to 
the uttermost. The purely political problem before Lincoln, using 
" political " in the narrow American sense of the word, was a more 
difficult one than any that had confronted pre\ious Presidents. 

Scores of diverse elements, each thinking that its labors had 
been the most effective, had to be kept together in the moment of 
^'ictory. The sharing of the spoils revived the old enmities, which 
had been temporarily lost sight of in the heat of the conflict. Demo- 
crat abhorred Whig, and both still looked on the Abolitionist as 
dangerous, while a rumor that Lincoln would try to conciliate the 
border states by appointing " Bell-Everetts " in that region caused 
consternation.'' The Tribune said : " Of course, they must alienate 
many bj' their distribution of the patronage ; were they angels they 
could not fail to do this." ^ That the part\- remained solid through- 
out the war, and that the war Democrats so lo}"aIly supported the 
Union was, to be sure, mainK' due to the nature of the issue, but the 
time that Lincoln spent in trj'ing to "do justice to all"' was not 
wasted. To entrust similar functions to favorites, is deemed blame- 
worthy in a King, or in a President when he entrusts them to a boss. 
Lincoln seems to have fallen into the temptation, thus to shift the 
task to other shoulders. He told a visitor at Springfield that he 
would call an adviser, when the proper time came, and would go 
over the most important cases with him, and would have little or 
nothing to do with minor posts,'' but fortunately he changed his 
mind before the trial came, and did not shirk this arduous but nec- 
essary duty. 

The consensus of public opinion, in no uncertain tones, formu- 
lated the principles which should be followed in regard to the civil 
service. These were the halc)-on days of the spoils system ; but 

' Herndon, Abrahant Lincoln^ III. 507- 

^Lamon, RecolUitions of Abiahani Lincoln, 212; Tarbell, Lincoln, II. 25. 

» to Chase, March 27, 186 1. Nctju York Tribune, March 26, lS6l. 

< March 4, 1 861. 

5 Lincoln, Complete Works, I. 657. 

« Tarbell, Lincoln, II. 23. 



P 



.5 . X'l / 



Li)tcoln and the Pati'OJiage 55 

listening most intently, one can scarcely hear a whisper of reform. 
The public offices constituted a fund, from which the most deserv- 
ing party workers were to be paid for their service ; positions were 
to be held only four years, in order that everybody might have a 
chance. If this were the practice when a President succeeded one 
of his own party, how much more when he followed an opponent ! 
An excuse was found for such rapid change in the theory that 
official duties were so easy as to be within the capacity of any 
American. The career of Lincoln previous to 1861 did not indicate 
that he opposed this creed. He had held a few minor offices in his 
youth, before party organization and its concomitant, the spoils 
system, had reached Illinois.' In 1849, as the voluntarily retiring 
representative of his district, he had much to say about certain ap- 
pointments under the new Whig administration. In one letter he 
stated the facts in regard to the Democratic incumbent, and re- 
quested that some general rule be adopted, and that it be applied 
without modification in this case." Another letter, in regard to 
an officer whose removal had been requested, he premised with 
the statement that the man in question had done the duty of his 
office well, and was a gentleman in a true sense, but it is evident 
before the end, that he shared the desire for the removal.^ Lincoln 
was himself an applicant, but he seems to have sacrificed his chances 
for the sake of a friend. ^ 

While there is nothing in his conduct or expressed views before 
election which can be considered a protest against the prevailing 
practice, there is nothing, on the other hand, dishonorable. His 
language and action are always those of a man who is honest even 
with himself. He made no ante-nomination promises,'' and as few 
ante-inauguration ones as possible," but he fulfilled, in making up 
his cabinet, two pledges made by his managers.' One well ac- 
quainted witii him would have expected an honest and politic ad- 
ministration of the patronage, along the customary lines, for the 
benefit of the party. 

The pressure for a " clean sweep "* was so insistent that the 
administration could not settle down to more serious business until 
it was, in part at least, relieved. Seward, in his famous " Thoughts 

' Tarbell, Lincoln, \. 96, 99. 

2 Lincoln, Woris, I. 153. 

3/biii., I. 155. 

*Tarbell, Lincoln, I. 229-231. 

^ Rhodes, History of the Unit/J States from the Compromise of i8jo, II. 467. 

6 Tarbell, Lincoln, 11. 23. 

'Rhodes, II. 467. 

^ Brooks, Lincoln, 207. 



56 C. R. Fish 

for the President," ' mentioned this necessity, and suggested that 
they " make local appointments first, leaving foreign or general ones 
for ulterior and occasional action." This plan seems to have been 
followed ; for several months notices of foreign appointments are 
rare in the papers, and begin again during the summer." The bur- 
den was like Sisyphus's stone, however ; no sooner was one swarm 
of applicants disposed of, than some new act, made necessary by 
the war, brought another about the devoted heads of the adminis- 
tration. While the temptations to dishonesty, owing to the sudden 
expansion of the budget, caused men to drop from the civil service, 
and leave places to be filled, the enemy were constantly creating 
vacancies in the army ; and the patronage was a never-ending 
annoyance. 

The sweep made by the Republicans in iS6i was the cleanest 
in our history ; never before did so small a proportion of officers 
remain to carry on the traditions of the civil service. In the 1520 
presidential offices, there were 11 95 changes, that may be classed 
under the head of removals.'' In some cases there were two or 
three changes in the same office,* and so the number left would be 
a little larger than would at first appear. It must be remembered, 
however, that there were certainly some Republicans in office, and 
that there have always been civil servants whose efficiency has 
raised them above party, men like William Hunter, who positively 
cannot be spared. Moreover, many offices were in the south, and 
were simply left unoccupied. As more and more territory was 
conquered, postmasters and collectors were appointed ; sometimes 
as " vice A. B., who joined the rebels," '' sometimes as dc iioto;" but 
in many cases no record whatever is found in the Executive Journal, 
from which these statistics were compiled. It is evident, therefore, 
that the change in personnel must ha\'e been practically complete. 

In the departments at Washington, and the local offices all over 
the country, changes were somewhat more numerous than usual,'' 
but here tliey varied from department to department, according to 
the disposition of those who administered the patronage in the 

' Nicolay and Hay, Abraham Lincoln, A History, III. 445. 

2 It is a peculiar incident, considering the relations between Seward and Weed and 
Greeley, that although the " Thoughts " are dated April I, and remained secret so many 
years, the A\nv York Tribune of April 2 announced : " The President has determined not 
to consider any further changes in the diplomatic service until the more important matters 
which now engross the attention of the administration are decided." 

'Fish, "Tables of Removals," in Am. His/. .-Issol. Report, 1S99, 82. 

^E.xicutive Joiirna!, XI. 3S5 ; XIII. 316. 

^Ibid., XIV. 495. 

^Ibid., XIII. 543. 

'Comparison of " Blue Books" of 1859 and 1861 with those of other appropriate 
dates. I expect to publish, later, tables illustrating this point. 



Lincoln and the Patronage 57 

several instances. With Cameron in the War Department, we are 
not surprised to hear that the clerks there " received broad intima- 
tion . . . that most of them would be expected to retire, for others 
who had not enjoyed the flesh-pots."' The news was early given 
out that Chase intended seriously to enforce the law that subordi- 
nates should be examined before appointment ;" and the regulation 
was apparently carried out.^ Changes were not numerous in the 
State Department ; William Hunter was appointed under Jackson 
and served until 18S6, and Frederick Seward says that his father 
retained all the loyal clerks.^ 

The mention of loyal clerks suggests one reason for the com- 
pleteness of the overturn in 1861. The long alliance of the North- 
ern Democracy with the South caused office-holders to be generally 
suspected. In the diplomatic service the South had about its proper 
proportion,' yet it was popularly believed that the whole corps was 
pro-slavery in sentiment. The TrUninc, June 3, 1S61, stated : " In 
deference to universal sentiment, the President will suspend the 
diplomatic functions of James E. Harvey, Minister to Portugal." 
Seward wrote to Dayton, July 6, 1861, that our representatives in 
foreign courts were demoralized, and, in some cases, we had reason 
to believe, absolutely disloyal.^ The few officials who were retained 
in service were those who came out decidedly for the Union, as 
Mr. Cisco, Assistant Treasurer at New York." It is probably true 
also, as the Tribune stated, that the general standard of efficiency 
was lower than usual in i860.'' These circumstances do not ex- 
plain the proscription ; that was inevitable ; but they partly explain 
its severity. 

As our public men lacked the inventiveness of our mechanics, 
political custom decreed that all these vacated offices, and all the 
new ones created by the necessities of the war, should be filled by 
hand. Yet custom provided, also, for the subdivision of the labor. 
By a gradual development, beginning in the greater local knowledge 
of its members, and becoming particularly rapid after the election 
of Jackson, Congress had established a strong claim to dictate many 
of the appointments. Its members, indeed, seemed ready to take 
upon themselves the entire burden ; but as the various Secretaries 
were responsible for the conduct of their subordinates, they claimed 

' Tribune, March 23, 1861. 

2 Tribtine, March 9, tS6l. 

3 Hart, Salmon P. Chase, 216-217. 

* Seward, Se'ward at Washinglon, I. 520. 

5 In 1859, 79 out of 151. " Blue Book." 

« Bancroft, The Life of William H. Se^uarJ, II. 153. 

'' Ex. Jour., IX. 324; X. 330 ; XII. 269. 

' Tribune, March 9, 1861. 



D 



8 C R. Fish 



to be lieard also, wliile the President had his own responsibiHty and 
the claims of many outside interests to consider. The irresistible 
conflict between these various official interests was perhaps the 
more keen in the earl_\' part of the Lincoln administration, because 
so many of the Republicans were new men, and the}- lacked minute 
knowledge of the official tradition. Lincoln's policy in adjusting 
these claims is to be discovered only by a study of his practice, and 
was probabl}- only developed as the cases came before him. (Jne 
attempt was made to relieve the administration of a part of its 
burden. The Tribune suggested, March 13, 1861, that postmas- 
ters should be chosen by vote of the Republicans in their respective 
districts. Lincoln advised the use of the plan in at least one in- 
stance,' and it was employed in a number of cases.'- It was, how- 
ever, of little practical importance. 

Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy, gives an account of a 
meeting where claims of the several interests came into conflict. 
It was held late in March, 1S61, to arrange nominations for the 
state of New York satisfactory to Seward and Weed, the Senators, 
and the President. An agreement was finally brought about, and 
Lincoln jsroposed that it be sent at once to the Senate. Welles 
asked if the Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney-General 
had been consulted, for some of the officers under consideration 
belonged to their departments. They had not been, but Seward 
said that he knew what was best for the party in the state, and that, 
as he and the Senators were of one mind, there need be no more 
discussion. Welles argued for the rights of the Secretaries ; Lincoln 
finally decided that they ought at least to be consulted ; and the 
nominations were deferred.' 

Still, where there was harmon}- in the delegations, and when 
they met and arranged a slate, it was apt to be accepted.' In 
regard to the post-office at Providence, Lincoln wrote to Governor 
Sprague that the two Senators, the two old Representatives, and 
one of the new ones were combined in favor of one candidate, and 
added ; " In these cases the executive is obliged to be greatly 
dependent upon the members of Congress, and while under peculiar 
circumstances a single member or two may be overruled, I believe 
as strong a combination as the present never has been.'"^ A friend 
from Boston wrote to Chase, April 11, 1861: "You inquire, 
' How overrule the Delegation ? ' I cannot and will not ask \-ou to 

'Tarbell, Lincoln, II. 340-341. LeUer of March 30, 1S61. 
' Hollister, Schuyler Co/fox, 173. 
^ Welles, Lincoln and Sewanl, 71. 
'Lincoln, ll'oris, II. 200, 272. 
'//'ill., 45. 



Lincoln and the Patyonaoe 59 

overrule it. But in strict response to ' Ho\v ? ' I will say this. 
The Delegation have had tlicir choice in Mr. Goodrich, an old Whig — 
never a Free-soiler. The President has had his choice in Mr. Tuck 
for naval officer, an old Whig, finally voting for Winthrop in the 
celebrated contest for the speakership. Though it is your depart- 
ment, you have not had yoiir choice." ' Sumner in a letter to R. 
H. Dana, April 14, 1861, described his interview with Lincoln, 
when presenting the list agreed to by the Massachusetts Congress- 
men," and the Tribune of April 13th announced that the whole of it 
had been accepted, though the opposition had been strong. The 
President seems to have made it a uniform practice to consult with 
the Senators before making nominations from or for their states,' 
whether he could follow their advice or not. A correspondent 
advised Chase to send in certain nominations at once, as the next 
Senator from California might cause him trouble if he delayed.' 
While the more important state posts were thus largely controlled 
by the delegations, and especially the Senators, the minor offices scat- 
tered over the country were generally left almost entirely to the 
Representatives from the district, if they were reliable. Riddle, 
from the Western Reserve, had all the post-offices for the asking, 
except that of Cleveland," in regard to which Senator Wade was 
consulted, who, however, refused to interfere in the matter." 

Although Lincoln thus made Congressional representations the 
basis of his system of appointments, he did not submit to dictation. 
There are a few evidences that Congress was not altogether satisfied, 
or was becoming jealous of the waxing power of the President. These 
are particularly interesting as indicating that the struggle between 
the two branches of the government might have come about, even 
if Johnson had not succeeded Lincoln. The first act creating the 
system of national banks gave the nomination of the Comptroller 
of the Currency to the Secretary of the Treasury, and fixed his term 
at five years, during which he was to be removed only by and with 
the advice and consent of the Senate." Such a change of constitu- 
tional principles was too great to be made until the question had 
been fully threshed out, and the act of 1864 modified the lat- 
ter clause, so that merely a statement to the Senate of tiie cause of 
removal was required." The growing distrust of the executive is 

' Chase MSS. 

2 Adams, Dana, II. 257. 

'Lincoln, SForks, II. 210, 213, 513, 57S. 

•• to Chase, March 9, 1863. Chase MS.S. 

^ Riddle, Recollections of War Times^ 24. 
''Tarbell, Lincoln, II. 340. 

" Cong. Gloiie, 3d Session, 37th Cong., App. , p. 1 89. 
*Cong. Globe, 1st Session, 38th Cong., App., p. 169. 



6o C. R. Fish 

also shown b)' a provision attached to the military appropriation 
bill of 1863, forbidding the payment of any salary "to any person 
appointed during the recess of the senate, to fill a vacancy in any 
existing office which vacancy existed while the senate was in ses- 
sion and is by law required to be filled by and with the advice and 
consent of the senate, until such appointees shall have been con- 
firmed by the senate." ' 

Not less sensitive than the members of Congress were the heads 
of departments, and several of them had, besides their official posi- 
tions, strong political backing ; such men were Seward, Chase and 
Cameron. To the same class belong certain powerful individuals, 
who, though in private life, exercised great influence at Washing- 
ton : of these the most conspicuous were Horace Greeley and Thur- 
low Weed. The latter was the Mr. Hyde to Seward's Dr. Jekyl. 
Their close connection is illustrated by the following story related 
by Gideon Welles. Weed secured from Seward an order appoint- 
ing one of his henchmen as consul at Falmouth, England. Wil- 
liam Hunter, the veteran chief clerk of the State Department, pro- 
tested to Weed, as the appointment involved the removal of an able 
official, whose father had received the post from Washington as 
a reward for some public service. Without further consultation 
Weed kindly destroyed the note Seward had given him, and thus 
reinstated the old consul." Lincoln has best set out the political 
difficulties in New York state in a letter to Chase : " Ought Mr. 
Young to be removed ? Ought Mr. Adams to be appointed ? . . . 
Mr. Adams is magnificentl}- recommended, but the great point in 
his favor is that Thurlow Weed and Horace Greeley join in recom- 
mending him. I suppose the like never happened before, and 
never will occur again ; so, now or never, what do you say ? " ' The 
President treated Weed with consideration, but did not lack in firm- 
ness.^ 

Seward could not, of course, expect to control all the appoint- 
ments in his department, for foreign posts ha\'e always had an 
especial attraction for the office seeker. Quite a number of letters 
were sent to Chase asking him to secure for the applicants places under 
the State Department, and he obtained, besides several minor posi- 
tions, the consul-generalship at Rio Janeiro for an Ohioan. This 
office seems, in fact, to have been considered the peculiar property of 
Chase, for when it fell vacant he was allowed freely to name the 
new occupant. Still, Seward's influence was probably felt in most 

' Cong. Globe, 1st Session, 37th Cong., .-^pp.. p. 1S3. 
^ Welles, Lincoln an J Sc-oard, 74. 
'Lincoln, Works, II 44. 
' //'/(/., 425. 



Lincoln and tlic Patronage 6 i 

of the more important selections ;' he was responsible for the 
appointment of Charles Francis Adams, against the wishes of Lin- 
coln,' and many other estimable appointments should be credited to 
him, as of John Lothrop Motley, of Mr. March to Italy, and of John 
Bigelow as consul-general at Paris. 

No one man caused the President more trouble in the distribu- 
tion of the patronage than Chase, who had probably higher ideals 
on the subject than any one else in the Cabinet,'' and was always 
spurred on to fight for his rights by that suspicion of all who op- 
posed him, which is so common in people of high ideals. He 
strongl}' atlvocated the right of the head of a department to choose 
the subordinates for whom he was responsible ; ^ but he did not at- 
tempt to control the appointments of the great collectors under 
him.'' He was favored, however, by the President's appointing, 
without any pressure from him, his friend Barney to the most im- 
portant post of all, the collectorship of New York ;'' while the im- 
mense expansion of business, and the great number of special offi- 
cers needed, gave him abundant opportunity to try his hand at 
managing the patronage. 

In 1864 Chase declared that he would despise himself if he 
were capable of appointing or removing a man for the sake of the 
presidency." At this high standard he seems to have aimed con- 
scientiously during his administration of the Treasur)' Department ; 
but it did not always insure a wise choice of subordinates or keep 
him entirely out of the mud of partizan politics. Men are known 
b\- their friends. Chase disliked opposition, and on the whole did 
not make friends of the chief men in public life."* The impression 
that one gets from the letters written to him during his term of 
office is that, besides many high-principled men, he had about him 
a large number who played upon his high motives, and that he was 
less keen than the average man in public life in reading character. 
There is more flattery than is ordinary in such letters, much parade 
of high motive, that does not ring quite true ; and, while capacity 
is put forward as a reason for appointment, the chief emphasis is 
laid upon personal friendship or need. A typical extract is the fol- 
lowing : " ' Let justice be done if the hea\'ens fall.' Mr. P^Iliot is 

' 10 Chase, June 12, Aug. 29, Sept. 17, 1S62; Jan. 5, 1863. Chase MSS. 

2 Adams, Charlc-s Francis Adams, 145-146. 
'Hart, Chase, 311. 

'^ Ibid., 305. Bancroft, Sc-imrd, II. 356. Chase to .Seward, Mar. 27, 1S61. The 
appointment of his brother was involved in this case. 

5 to Chase, April II, iS6i. Chase MSS. Ex. Jour., Vol. XI., 292. 

' Hart, C/tase, 217. 
" /t>iJ., 311. 
* Jbid., 422. 



62 C. R. Fish 

capable and honest, and for Goc/'s sake don't desert him now for 
the clamor of those not his equals in either respect ; a better man 
or one more sincerely your friend is not a candidate for the of- 
fice." ' Another; " I can assure you that I should look upon his 
appointment as a deadly bloiv at your influence in this eity, and I be- 
lieve Dr. Nixon is the only reliable friend of yours who is a candi- 
date."- Another: "God knows no one needs the appointment 
more than I do." ' One interesting recommendation is that he find 
a consulship for an Ohio editor, in order that an abler man might 
be found to fill the place.* 

As a result, partly of his lack of judgment in selection and partly 
of the sudden expansion ( f the business of his department, many of 
his appointees got into trouble. In these cases Chase seems almost 
alwa)-s to have been deeply moved b)' loyalt}- to friendship, and to 
have hesitated too long in seeing reason for removal. Perhaps, 
also, his legal training made him unable to appreciate that when a 
public servant is suspected, much less than legal proof may justify, 
nay em|3hatically call for, his dismissal. This led to continual fric- 
tion with Lincoln, and much heart-burning. The most important 
case is that of Victor Smith, Collector at Puget Sound. He fell 
under suspicion of dishonesty,^ probably unjust, but he was certainly 
guilty of sharp practice and had utterly lost the confidence of the 
community.'' Lincoln, therefore, after a struggle with Chase, de- 
cided on his remova.l.' The latter in a letter to Smith expressed 
his unshaken confidence in him,"" and assured him that he would 
give him another appointment if he could.'' 

This personal loyalty made every failure to secure his point 
seem a personal rebuff, and the situation became particularly strained 
toward the end of the administration, when Chase was leader of the 
radicals, and Lincoln had to conciliate all factions. In New York, 
Barney tried to oppose Seward and Weed,"' but was not strong 
enough to maintain himself in the troubled sea of New York poli- 
tics, and Lincoln finally decided to remove him." Chase probably 
agreed with a correspondent in St. Louis, that there was " war fi'om 

' lo Chase, May 19, 1861. Ch.ise MSS. 

to Chase, March 9, 1861. Chase MSS. 

^ to Chase, Sept. 3, 1861. Chase MSS. 

* to Chase. Sept. i, 1S63. Chase MSS. 

^ to Chase. May 30, 1S62. Chase MSS. 

' Hart, C/uisi', 305-306. 

" Tarliell, l.iiuoln, II. 364. Lincoln. M'i-rks, II. 335. 
■"^ Smith to Chase, June 3, 1863. 

-'Warden, Aaouitt of I he Pih'ate Life niul I'liHic Se>~'iccs of Salmon Poi/'iuh/ 
Chase, 529. 

'" to Chase, Feb. 26, 1864 ; to Chase, June 3, 1864. Chase MSS. 

■' Lincoln, IVorks, II. 313. 



Lincohi and the Patronage 63 

the White House" upon his friends,' and matters did not beeome 
more pleasant after his withdrawal from the contest for the presi- 
dential nomination." Finally a difficulty about an office in New 
York, which he fought through and finally compromised with a 
New York Senator, led him to send in his resignation, perhaps with 
the idea of forcing a definite arrangement with regard to the 
patronage. The resignation was unexpectedly accepted. Perhaps 
Lincoln did not feel like entering upon another term with the cer- 
tain prospect of friction in the Cabinet. July i, 1864, Chase ceased 
to be Secretary of the Treasury. 

The other members of the Cabinet occasioned much less diffi- 
culty. Stanton quietly attended to his business, though he was 
occasionally irritable.^ Cameron's remark, that if Pennsylvania had 
stood by him at Chicago, he would have been President, " and then 
we all could have gotten everything that we wanted," ' shows him 
a spoilsman and unashamed, but as such, he, perhaps, understood 
the position of the President better than Chase ; while his incom- 
petency soon caused him to be delicately transferred to a post in 
Russia.' The Blairs had learned politics in the school of Jackson 
and, like Cameron, knew the traditions, and were besides in confi- 
dential relations with Lincoln,'^ until the dismissal of Montgomery 
in 1864. The following message to the Secretary of the Interior 
shows that the President was disposed to consult the less powerful 
Secretaries : " Please ask the Commissioner of Indian affairs and of 
the General Land Office to come with you, and see me at once. I 
want the assistance of all of you in overhauling the list of appoint- 
ments a little before I send them to the senate." " While he could 
rather peremptorily command the most powerful when necessary,''^ 
in ordinary circumstances he did not force his opinion on even the 
minor subordinates who dispensed the patronage. He wrote to 
Chase: "I have been greatly — I may say, grievously — disap- 
pointed and disobliged b>' Mr. Cochran's refusal to make Mr. Evans 
deputy naval officer, as I requested him to do. ... A point must 
be strained to give Mr. Lvans a situation." " 

Another set of men who claimed to be heard were the governors. 

I to Chase, Oct. 30, 1S63. Cha.se MSS. 

^Hait, Chase, 310-314. 

^ Corham, Life and Public So-Aces of Etkvard M. Slautiin, 246-24S. Hait, Chase 

307. 

•" McClure, Lincoln and the Men of IVar-Times, 132. 

^Tarbell, Lincoln, II. 76-78. Weed, Aiilohiogvaphy of Thiirl,r,ii llWd, 330. 

'Lincoln, Worlis, II. 374, 375, 433, 434, 438, 579. 

' Tarbell, Lincoln, II. 343. 

8 Lincohi, Works, II. 335. 

* Lincoln, IVorts, II. 42. 



64 C. R. Fish 

Go\'ernor Morton wrote ; " I learn incidcntall)' that the Indiana 
delegation has nominated men to be appointed brigadier-generals. 
I do not know who they are, and have not been consulted. I have 
had much more to do with the officers than any member of 
Congress, and ha\'e had much moie responsibilit}- in connection 
with the organization than any of them, and I believe I should at 
least have the chance of being heard before an\' action is taken." 
The President answered that the rumor was untrue, and asked 
him to telegraph recommendations.' No dictation, however, was 
allowed ; when Governor Morton at another time complained of 
two rumored nominations, Lincoln replied that they had not been 
made, but added : " The latter particularl)- has been m\- friend, and 
I am sorry to learn that he is not yours."- To Governor Pierpont, 
of West Virginia, who was irritated by an appointment, the Presi- 
dent wrote that he had thought the name of the api_iointee was 
approved by the governor, but knew that it was not the one the 
governor preferred." A despatch to Governor Tod, of Ohio, was 
as follows : " I think your advice with that of others would be 
valuable in the selection of provost marshals for Ohio." ' 

Militar}- appointments, in the beginning of the war, were made 
in the same way as those in the civil service ; later the majority of 
promotions settled themselves. Where the administration was 
forced to deal with the matter the advice of the higher officers 
seems to have been considered, though not decisive or having a 
weight of authority like that of a Senator :' merely an additional 
factor in these special cases, valuable according to the personal 
influence of the individual. 

While allowing th.it others had a right to be heard, Lincoln 
never forgot that he, as responsible head of the government, owed 
it to himself and to the countr\-, to be master. His Cabinet was 
his own, and he'' maintained it, even when requested by the Repub- 
lican Senate Caucus to make changes." The freedom of choice, 
which he allowed the various officials, was a freedom to act within 
the limiting conditions of his policy. It is, therefore, important to 
discover, as far as possible, what that policy v/as. 

In some few cases he sought the man whose abilities best fitted 
him for the post,** but these were distinctl}- exceptions. In general 

1 l-Vmlke, ///'<• of O/itvr P. JA>rf.>/r, 154. 

-'Tarbell, Liiuoln, II. J47. 

■i Ibid., II. 352. 

<Tarl.ell, Lincoln, II. 361. 

'- Ilnd., 11. 356, 360, 362. 

6 Rhodes, III. 320, 

■> Rhodes. IV. 206. 

^ See for example I. anion, A\\-oiii-i't!on^, 211. 



Lincoln and the Patronage 65 

he followed the accepted doctrine that many could perform the 
duties required, and that other qualities and circumstances should 
be taken into consideration in making the selection. As there was 
nothing novel in this practice, so the additional considerations were, 
most of them, time-honored. But in the abundance of traditions 
there were some that he neglected, and in this, and in the weight 
assigned to each, he showed his individuality. 

From the days of the Continental Congress, geographical con- 
siderations have always had their influence. Had George Wash- 
ington lived in Delaware, he would not have been chosen com- 
mander-in-chief in 1775. Such influences are a natural result of 
our territorial extent, our federal and representative government. 
Lincoln was himself largely indebted to them for his own nomina- 
tion. His appreciation of them is sufficiently obvious from a study 
of his Cabinet. " Pennsylvania, any more than New York or Ohio, 
cannot be overlooked," he told Weed.' The geographical arrange- 
ment, once fixed, was continued through all Cabinet changes. 
Stanton, of Pennsylvania, succeeded Cameron, of the same state. 
Caleb Smith was followed by Usher, also of Indiana ; Bates, of 
Missouri, by Speed, of Kentucky ; and when Chase's place could 
not be filled from Ohio, an Ohio Postmaster-General was soon after- 
wards appointed. When McCulloch was needed in the Treasury, 
Usher resigned, that Indiana might not have two members. It was 
with reluctance, however, that, as President-elect, Lincoln yielded 
to advice, and requested John A. Gilmer, who was not a Repub- 
lican, to take a place in his Cabinet, in order that the South might 
be represented.^ Party consolidation seemed to outweigh geogra- 
phy in this instance. When he could do so without risk, however, 
he was glad to favor the South. The double representation of 
Missouri was largely due to the fact that it was the only slave 
state to give a respectable Republican vote. Early in 1861 he 
wrote to John A. Gilmer : "As to the use of patronage in the slave 
states, where there are few or no Republicans, I do not expect to 
inquire for the politics of the appointee, or whether he does or does 
not own slaves. I intend in that matter to accommodate the 
people in the several localities, if they themselves will allow me to 
accommodate them. In one word, I never have been, am not now, 
and probably never shall be in a mood of harassing the people 
either north or south." ^ When President, he gave one applicant a 
note for the Postmaster-General, concluding : " I think Virginia 
should be heard in such cases." * 

' Tarbell, Lincoln, I. 400. ^ IbiJ., 394. ^ 

2 Ihid. , I. 402. * Ibid., 340. 

.\M. HIST. REV., VOL. VUI. — 5. 



66 C. R. Fish 

Another object of importance was to adjust properly the claims 
of the various factions that made up the party. In part this was 
easily accomplished. When parties are young each state is apt to 
have its favorite son, and geographical considerations brought the 
local leaders into the Cabinet. But there were still difficulties. 
December 24, i860, Lincoln wrote to Hamlin : " I need a man of 
democratic antecedents from New England. I cannot get a fair 
share of that element in without." ' When the Cabinet was com- 
plete, Seward, Bates and Smith, with Lincoln, offset Welles, Cam- 
eron, Chase and Blair.- This balance was not preserved throughout 
the term. Stanton did succeed Cameron, and Governor Tod of 
(_)hio was asked to take Chase's position ; ' but the Whig element 
ultimately became the stronger ; without counting Lusher, whose 
earlier political relations I have been unable to learn, five members 
of the Cabinet at the time of Lincoln's death were of Whig antece- 
dents. By that time, however, these old time party distinctions 
had become less important. 

The main object of these two rules was to avoid giving offense, 
but not all of Lincoln's principles were negative. He was all the 
time using the patronage to strengthen the party and aid in canying 
out the policy of the administration. Sometimes lie put a prominent 
man in a good humor by volunteering to let him name a boy for 
West Point, ^ or by the unexpected offer of a foreign mission.^ He 
liked the idea of appointing a man named Schimmelpfening, as it 
would be something " unquestionably in the interest of the Dutch." *' 
He made, moreover, far more definite use of his power. Charles 
A. Dana" describes the anxiety of Lincoln lest the bill for the ad- 
mission of Nevada should not pass, and a vote on the Thirteenth 
Amendment be lost. The prospect was that the House would 
oppose the bill, but by a small majority. Lincoln sent Dana to 
two of the New York delegation and one member from New Jersey 
with carte blanche to offer them anything in the line of patronage 
in return for their votes. Two were secured by internal collector- 
ships. One held out, and was promised a S30,ooo office in the 
New York customs-house ; he did not secure it, however, as the 
bargain had not been executed before the death of Lincoln, and 
Johnson refused to recognize it. The accoimt of this transaction 
was written long afterwards, but it is circumstantial and probably 

> Hamlin, Li/c ami Times of Haui*ibal Hamlin, 374. 

2 Welles, Lincoln ami Sewnrii, 34. 

2 Nicolay and Hay, Lincoln. IX. 332-343. 

<Tarbell, Lincoln, II. 37S. 

5 Lincoln, IVorIt!, II. 653. 

^ Lamon, L\ecoliections, 133. 

' Dana, Kccollcctions of tlic Civil War, 1 74-179. 



Lincoln and the Patronage 67 

trustworthy in the main points/ Such cases seldom come to light ; 
and when one is found, others probably may be inferred. This 
simply means that Lincoln stretched a point, in time of need, in the 
use of the patronage, as he did in the interpretation of the consti- 
tution. 

All evidence indicates that Lincoln never went to such extremes 
except to accomplish some really vital object, that he never abused, 
and apparently never used, the patronage for personal aggrandize- 
ment. After Chase's resignation, the President instructed Fessen- 
den not to remove the friends of Chase." Of course, the conditions 
made it impossible to prevent subordinate officers from interfering 
in factional fights, particularly those at a distance from Washington 
and in the south, ^ but Lincoln seems to have faithfully followed the 
principles laid down in a letter to a postmaster, accused of misusing 
his official power, August 5, 1864: . . . "All our friends should 
have absolute freedom of choice among our friends. My wish, 
therefore, is that you will do just as you think fit with your own 
suffrage in the case, and not constrain any of your subordinates to 
do other than he sees fit with his." ^ As the use of the patronage 
to carry out a broad national policy, if not commendable, is to be dis- 
tinguished from that for personal advantage, so the latter should not 
be confused with a little harmless favoritism or nepotism. Lincoln 
was seldom nice about small points, and perhaps felt justified in 
getting some pleasure out of his heavy task. Many instances are 
given of his appointing old friends, generally for friendship's sake,'' 
and sometimes against advice." Mrs. Lincoln's " numerous cousins " 
were occasionally aided in securing favors." He was always fond 
of artists, and wrote to Seward in regard to two who had painted 
his portrait at Springfield, that he had "some wish " that they 
might have some of those moderate-sized consulates which facili- 
tate artists a little in their profession.'* 

Underlying all these principles, and the hundred rules implied 
in them, was the basal theory of the spoils system, which has been 

' A hunt for the posts involved fails to reveal them, but for obvious reasons ; the yeas 
and nays were not called for when the bill passed, the members who wanted the collec- 
torships, doubtless, only cared for the patronage — that is. took them to give away, and 
the other did not get his post. 

^ Hart, Chase, 318. 

' to Chase, Feb. 26, 1S64, states that the Republican candidate for governor 

of Louisiana was nominated because of his use of government patronage. 

'Lincoln, Works, IL 558. 

'Tarbell, Lincoln, L 105, 106; IL 360, 502-505. Herndon, Lincoln, IIL 506, 

507. 

^Tarbell, Lincoln, IL 17. 
'Lincoln, Works, II. 430. 
•Tarbell, Lincoln, I. 374. 



68 C. R. Fish 

mentioned as the accepted doctrine of the day. The civil service 
was a great treasury to be drawn on at will. If a man drew on it 
for purposes high and good, provided the efficiency of the service 
was tolerable, he did all that could be expected of him. That the 
evil lay deeper than the simple use of offices for political purposes 
is easily seen. July 21, 1863, Lincoln wrote to Blair, that soldiers 
and their families had the best claim on the patronage.' This 
claim, widely acknowledged, has caused incalculable harm to public 
service, and yet seems so reasonable and proper that reformers 
have many times been obliged to compromise with it. It would be 
unjust to expect Lincoln to see the fallacy in this seductive theory, 
or find a solution of the problems that would arise if it were thrown 
aside. If he had had them pointed out to him, he would probably 
have replied that, for the present at least, there were things of more 
import than bringing administration to the highest pitch of excel- 
lence, and that he could not aftbrd to part with this powerful party 
cement. 

From such a creed there seems little hope of any fundamental 
betterment. The great civil service reform movement began just to 
swell in the bud during Lincoln's life-time." One sign there was 
that he might have favored it : he was annoyed at the claim that 
the patronage made upon his time. He was loath to remove from 
office even a person unfriendh- to him, ' until the ofiicial's incapacity 
had been thoroughly proved ; ^ and, inasmuch as new appointments 
would be entailed, he disliked to appoint any one already in office 
to a new vacanc}'.' The most notable example of this feeling, how- 
ever, is found at the \'er\- close of his life. The doctrine of rotation 
in office had, after a long, slow growth, attained its highest point 
in 1S56, when Buchanan, though succeeding a President of his 
own party, turned out the office-holders under the decent cover of 
this respectable phrase. When Lincoln's second inauguration ap- 
proached, the expectation was that he would push the principle 
still further, and turn out his own appointees. He tried to stir up 
public sentiment against it ; but on March 4, 1S65, the Tribune an- 

' Lincoln, Works, II. 375. 

'^Sumner in 1S64 brouglit in a bill (Von Hoist, Pretissistken Jahrbiuher, XXW'I. 
376 ). Jenckes did not bring in his until the fall of 1865. A fragment of a proposed 
bill for consular reform did pass ( Cong. Globe, 1st Sess. 3Sth Cong., App., p. 182), but 
was a revival of a law of 1865 (ibid., 1st Sess. 38th Cong., 11 15), except for the pro- 
vision that consular clerks should be removed only for cause, stated in writing, at the 
first session following. This was passed rather, perhaps, because of jealousy of the 
President than desire to protect the clerk. 

3 Lamon, Recollections, 211. 

<Tarbell, Lincoln, II. 66. 

^Ibid., 4 1 8. 



Lincoln and the Patronage 69 

nounced : " The second inaugural of President Lincoln takes place 
at Washington to-day, and an immense throng of politicians . . 
have already flocked thither, ... to push their fortunes." Lin- 
coln was firm, however, and March 7 the same paper stated ; 
" Office-seekers were informed that no general removal of officers 
would be made." This really unusual willingness to diminish the 
power of the patronage, even though personal annoyance was the 
main cause of it, was a long step on the road to reform, and it is 
by no means improbable that Lincoln, with his wonderful capacity 
for growth, might have accepted the idea of appointment by ex- 
amination, and advanced it to an earlier victory. 

Carl Russell Fish. 



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